troops in afghanistan are coming home this year. >> reporter: president obama says 34,000 u.s. troops will be pulled out of afghanistan by next year. >> this drawdown will continue and by the end of next year, the war in afghanistan will be over. >> reporter: on domestic issues, the key focus is jobs, the economy and pressuring congress to void automatic spending cuts on march first. >> they would certainly slow our recovery and cost us hundreds of thousands of jobs. >> reporter: victims of gun violence attending the speech along with the first lady underscored the pre's fish for lawmaker to pass new gun legislation. >> gabby giffords deserves a vote. the families of newtown deserve a vote. the families of tucson and blacksburg and the countless other opportunities ripped open by gun violence, they deserve a simple vote. >> reporter: the president said it is pastime for bipartisan immigration legislation. republicans say the president's focus really means more spending and deficits. >> his solution is for washington to tax more, borrow more and spend more. >> reporter: presiden